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Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

Hello! Dividend investing is a very interesting topic. Today, I have an expert who has appeared on Forbes, Motley Fool, MSN Money, TheStreet, and more, and he is going to share tons of great information on this subject. You may remember him from his previous contribution How I Became A Successful Dividend Growth Investor. This is a guest contribution by Ben Reynolds. Ben is the CEO of Sure Dividend. Sure Dividend helps people build high quality dividend growth portfolios for the long run.

Early retirement is the financial state of being where you don’t have to work. You only work if you want to.

Early retirement is reached when your passive income exceeds your expenses. The average retirement age in the United States is 63.

Retiring at any age is an accomplishment, but I think you will agree with me when I say that the earlier you retire, the better.

There are 6 key factors that determine how long it will take for you to reach retirement:

Your income (how much money you make)
Your savings rate (the percentage of your income you save)
Your expenses (how much money you spend)
The size of your investment account (how much you already have saved)
Your investment returns (how fast your investments are growing)
The yield on your investment portfolio (how much your investments pay you)

Making Sense of Cents has phenomenal information on increasing your income and savings rate, and reducing your expenses. These are all vital aspects of retiring early.

The size of your investment account now is based on your past decisions and for some people, being born into a wealthy family. It is what it is; you can’t change it.

How you invest will determine your investment returns and the yield on your investment portfolio when you are (early) retired.

I believe that dividend growth investing is uniquely situated to offer individual investors a way to build a portfolio for rising passive income that will lead to early retirement (depending of course on your income and expenses).

Related: What Are Dividends & How Do They Work? A Beginner’s Guide

What Is Dividend Growth Investing

Dividend growth investing is what it sounds like. The core idea of dividend growth investing is to invest in businesses via the stock market that are likely to pay growing dividends over time.

As an example, Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ) dividend history over the last 20 years is shown below:

Source: Johnson & Johnson Investor Relations page
Note: The 2017 number shows dividend payments to date. It will be higher than 2016 by the end of the year.

As you can see, Johnson & Johnson shareholders have seen their dividend income grow from $0.43 a share in 1997 to $3.15 a share in 2016. This is a 7.3x increase. More importantly, that 7.3x increase in income came without buying additional shares.

Dividend growth investing has a hidden benefit. It focuses you on the business, and not on the stock price. This means less (and hopefully no) panic selling during recessions. In fact, many dividend investors take advantage of market declines by purchasing into great dividend growth stocks while they are trading at a discount.

The reason dividend growth investing matches up with building an early retirement portfolio so well is because it provides rising income over time. This is a powerful feature that is not a characteristic of investing in bonds, gold, Bitcoin, or stocks that don’t pay dividends.

Reinvesting Dividends and Early Retirement

A portfolio that creates rising income over time is powerful. You can ‘super charge’ growth by reinvesting dividends back into the portfolio.

When Johnson & Johnson pays its dividend, instead of taking it in cash, you can use that dividend to buy more shares of Johnson & Johnson. You can see how this can greatly increase your passive income stream in the future in the example below.

Johnson & Johnson currently has a dividend yield of 2.6%. The company has grown its dividend at 11% a year from 1997 through 2016. Forecasting 11% a year growth ahead may lead to disappointment; there’s no guarantee Johnson & Johnson will continue such strong growth.

Say the company grows its dividend at ‘just’ 7% a year going forward. If you are reinvesting dividends, your income stream from Johnson and Johnson will grow at 9.6% a year. Your income growth is simply the expected dividend per share growth rate plus the company’s current dividend yield (if dividends are reinvested).

With 9.6% a year compounding, your income from Johnson & Johnson will double about every 8 years. I don’t know many other situations outside of dividend growth investing where you have a high likelihood of doubling your income in under a decade.

Strong income growth over time is why dividend growth investing can help you achieve early retirement. It isn’t instantaneous, but it is achievable.

Where to Find Great Dividend Growth Stocks

Johnson & Johnson is a strong dividend growth stock… But it’s not the only one. There are other great businesses with long histories of increasing their dividend income every year.

My favorite place to find potential dividend growth stocks worthy of an early retirement portfolio is the Dividend Aristocrats Index.

The Dividend Aristocrats are a group of 51 stocks in the S&P 500 with 25+ consecutive years of dividend increases. A few examples of well-known Dividend Aristocrats are below:

Aflac (AFL)
3M (MMM)
Coca-Cola (KO)
Wal-Mart (WMT)
Exxon Mobil (XOM)
Procter & Gamble (PG)
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)

The Dividend Aristocrats index is made up of businesses with long histories of rising dividends. A company simply cannot pay rising dividends for 25+ consecutive years without a strong and durable competitive advantage.

Why do competitive advantages matter? Warren Buffett himself says they are the key to investing.

“The key to investing is not assessing how much an industry is going to affect society, or how much it will grow, but rather determining the competitive advantage of any given company and, above all, the durability of that advantage.” – Warren Buffett

Not surprisingly, the Dividend Aristocrats Index has outperformed the S&P 500 over the last decade by 2.8 percentage points a year… With lower volatility.

Source: S&P Fact Sheet

To put this into perspective, $1.00 invested in the Dividend Aristocrats index 10 years ago would be worth $2.59 now, versus $2.00 for the S&P 500 (both numbers include dividends). Moreover, your portfolio wouldn’t have had as severe price swings, because the Dividend Aristocrats index has lower volatility than the S&P 500.

Final Thoughts

There’s no question building a portfolio for early retirement can be complicated… But it doesn’t have to be.

By investing in individual great businesses and holding them for their rising income potential (dividend growth investing), you can build a portfolio that is very likely to pay you rising income over time.

And importantly, investing in individual stocks eliminates costly management fees from mutual funds and ETFs so your money is left to compound in your account, where it belongs.

The bottom line is that retirement requires a stream of income in excess of your expenses. That income stream must also grow at least as fast (though preferably much faster) than inflation. Otherwise, you lose purchasing power – and you won’t stay retired for long.

Dividend growth investing can create growing income streams that are likely to rise well in excess of inflation. The unique characteristics of dividend growth investing are a compelling match for those seeking early retirement.

Are you interested in dividend investing? Why or why not?

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

If you work for a company that has a pension, should you be worried?
What protections do you have?
Will all the money you have been paying into your retirement just be gone?
Recently, American Airlines filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy leaving many wondering “What happens to their pension?“.
Whether you’re an employee of theirs or any other company that offers a pension, here’s what you need to know.

Insurance On Your Pension Plan

Fortunately, it is not as bad as most people think…maybe. There are safeguards in the United States to prevent you from losing your pension plan.
In the United States, every defined-benefit retirement plan is insured, at least to a point. Most will receive all or at least most of their company pension even if your company goes bankrupt. However, in some cases, it may not be every penny you expected.
(Also, be sure to check out my article on, Should I Roll My Pension Into an IRA for some options on your pension plan.)

What Happens When a Company Goes Bankrupt?

When a company goes bankrupt they have two choices. They can reorganize and try to stay in business by reducing costs and attracting new investors, or they can liquidate.
The pension plan is usually terminated in reorganization and always terminated in liquidation.
So, then what happens? A federal insurance agency called the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (pbgc.gov) takes over the pension payments.
Here’s some information on the PBCG taken from their site:

The PBGC is a federal corporation created under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. It currently guarantees payment of basic pension benefits earned by 44 million American workers and retirees participating in over 29,000 private-sector defined benefit pension plans. The agency receives no funds from general tax revenues. Operations are financed largely by insurance premiums paid by companies that sponsor pension plans and by investment returns.

Only employees with the largest pensions actually take a hit. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation maximum annual payment, which rises with inflation, is $54,000 this year for workers who retire at age 65.
As with any insurer, the PBGC has some restrictions. For example, it prorates recent pension increases.
However, in all, 84 percent of retirees get their full pension even after bankruptcy.

A Few Rare Cases Under Reorganization

In a few rare cases of a company bankruptcy reorganization, the employer maintains his/her pension plan. That normally only happens for one of three reasons.

The benefit is low
Employee turnover is high
The pension plan is new

Avoiding Bankruptcy is Better For The Company

In most cases, however, it is always better for the company to avoid bankruptcy altogether. In December of last year, Congress gave some help in this direction by relaxing the 2006 Pension Protection Act’s strict rules governing pension funding.
As counter-intuitive as it may seem, this is one move that endangered workers should embrace.
As a result of this move, according to Dallas Salisbury, president of the non-partisan Employee Benefit Research Institute, “Given the economic downturn, employees are better off than if the company was forced to make a large pension contribution. It’s better to stay in business than make a pension contribution.”

American Airlines Pension

In American Airline’s case, they are filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. In this case, the PBGC may need to step in and assist with their pension obligations.
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., created to protect private retirement benefits, may be unable to cover the loss because Congress has limited the size of pensions it can pay, Director Josh Gotbaum said in a statement.

“Unfortunately, when the agency assumed airline plans in the past, many people’s pensions were cut, in some cases dramatically,” Gotbaum said in the statement. The PBGC will encourage American to “fix its financial problems” and keep its pensions intact, he said.

In the meantime, AMR employees seem to be protected. But a quick look at the numbers doesn’t seem too reassuring.
Recent numbers show that they have about $8.3 billion in assets to cover the $18.5 billion in pension liabilities. If AMR has no choice and has to terminate the plan, that would leave the PBGC on the hook for a cool $17 billion.
Chump change for the PBGC, right? Don’t be so sure…

Strength of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation

Just like the FDIC, the financial strength of the PBGC hardly ever gets questioned. Unfortunately, these are unique times and it seems that no entity is out of harm’s way.
Lowering interest rates and rising corporate defaults has led to a $33.5 billion deficit in the first quarter of 2009 for the PBGC. This is the largest deficit for the 35-year-old agency which is an increase from the $11 billion deficit ending fiscal year 2008.
Acting director Vince Snowbarger says,

“The PBGC has sufficient funds to meet its benefit obligations for many years because benefits are paid monthly over the lifetimes of beneficiaries, not as lump sums. Nevertheless, over the long term, the deficit must be addressed.”

The Deficit Continues

For 2011, the PBGC just encountered it’s largest deficit while insuring 1 out of every 7 Americans. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. was quoted as saying it ran a $26 billion imbalance for the budget year that ended Sept. 30.
Their pension obligations rose by $4.5 billion as they currently insure over 44 million Americans. Does it make you nervous? It would make me.

How Does This Affect You?

If your company files for bankruptcy or you fear that it will, I would contact the PBGC and talk to them directly.
Be sure to visit their website frequently and check for updates. You are basically in their hands and you have limited choices.
If you have the option, consider rolling your pension into an IRA to get it out of your company’s hands. I’ve had many clients do this so that they never had to worry about this.
Be sure to consult a financial planner and/or tax advisor before implementing this step.

Source: goodfinancialcents.com

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

Safeguarding Your Investments: Navigating the Debt Limit and the Security of Your Treasury Bonds | SmartAsset.com

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Get ready for the trillion-dollar question: Are your Treasury bonds at risk in the face of a U.S. default? Brace yourself, because if Congress falters in raising the debt ceiling before the Treasury’s coffers run dry, the repercussions will be felt far and wide. When the government can’t foot its bills, that includes honoring payments on Treasury debt—bonds, bills and notes included. Discover the potential impact on your investments and protect your financial future.

A financial advisor can help you navigate this precarious moment. Find a fiduciary advisor today.

If you own Treasury bonds, there’s a very good chance that this will reduce the value of your investment. While the government will ultimately pay all of the interest and par value that you are owed, a default might delay those payments. It will also very likely reduce the value of your bonds on the secondary market, generating a lower return if you choose to sell them.

Here’s why.

Despite its misleading name, the debt limit does not actually limit government debt. Instead, it limits the Treasury’s ability to restructure that debt as necessary.

The total amount that the United States owes is established each year through Congress’ tax and budget process. In the annual budget, Congress makes millions of individual commitments to soldiers, sailors, teachers, air traffic controllers, corporate vendors, foreign governments and countless others. When tax revenues fall short of these commitments, the result is the total debt of the U.S.

To consolidate this debt, the Treasury issues bonds. These instruments shift the government’s obligations from a network of countless ad hoc creditors to a series of structured lenders on a fixed repayment schedule. Bonds give the Treasury the cash flow it needs to pay the bills that Congress has incurred, including past bills such as bonds issued in previous years.

The debt ceiling puts a cap on how many bonds the Treasury can issue. This eliminates its ability to restructure and consolidate, choking off the Treasury’s cash flow without affecting the government’s underlying debt.

What Will Happen to Bondholders If the Debt Ceiling Isn’t Lifted?

It’s difficult to tell exactly because this never happened before. However there are some likely results.

Investors who hold U.S. Treasury bonds are one of the great network of creditors to whom the government owes money. In their case, the government owes them regular interest payments and lump-sum repayments for matured assets. The Treasury issues these payments on a regular schedule, based on the nature of any individual asset.

Once in default, the Treasury will likely begin prioritizing payments, sending checks to some creditors while defaulting on others as cash rolls in. Among other things, in the same way that an unpaid power bill leads to penalties and fines, an extended default would likely result in penalties and lawsuits as individual creditors seek the money they are owed.

For bondholders, this could result in several significant outcomes.

First, no new assets to purchase.

Investors in U.S. debt will not be able to purchase new assets while the government is in default. The debt ceiling means that the Treasury is barred from issuing new debt instruments, so it will not sell new bonds until that limit is raised.

That does not mean that you can’t buy any Treasury bonds, just that you won’t have access to newly created and issued ones.

Second, payment disruptions are possible but unlikely.

If the Treasury has to structure payments due to cash flow issues caused by the debt ceiling, it’s likely that it will try to prioritize existing debt holders in an effort to preserve as much of the government’s credit and credibility as possible. If it has the cash on hand to do so, the Treasury will then continue issuing interest and repayments for existing bonds on schedule.

The problem is that the Treasury owes more than $1 trillion in maturity and interest payments over the course of June. It is unlikely to have this cash on hand in the absence of new borrowing.

In the event of a brief default, lasting hours or days, bondholders will probably not see any interruption in their payments. If a default lasts longer than that, the risks of a missed payment will increase, becoming a near-certainty if the government remains in default over a period of several weeks.

Third, your returns will likely suffer.

The yield on your bonds will likely be safe, even in the event of a payment disruption. However you can likely expect lower returns if you choose to sell your bonds.

If Congress defaults on the U.S. debt, it will almost certainly reduce the market value of this debt at every level. Much of the value behind these bonds is their perception as the world’s safest asset, guaranteed by both law and tradition. That confidence, once shaken, will not be easily restored. Secondary markets will almost certainly price this risk into Treasury bonds.

Beyond that, once in default credit agencies will downgrade U.S. debt. If that happens Treasury bonds will no longer meet the minimum standards for many low-risk funds and institutions, forcing them to sell their assets and flooding the market with Treasury bonds. Collectively, this will reduce the amount that buyers pay for Treasury assets, reducing the returns you can expect if you choose to sell your bonds. It will also likely push up the value of long-term bonds over short-term bonds, as investors seek the perceived security of assets that mature after the immediate default crisis has passed.

Fourth, interest rates will go up.

This is a double edged sword for investors.

As noted above, much of the value behind Treasury bonds is the idea that they are the world’s safest asset. This is priced into their interest rate. If Congress defaults on the U.S. debt it will introduce risk into Treasury borrowing. As with all debt, lenders charge higher interest rates for riskier assets. The result is that, once the debt ceiling is lifted, the Treasury will almost certainly have to pay higher interest rates for newly issued bonds.

For new investors, this will be a bit of rare good news. They will likely get better yields on new Treasury bonds going forward. For existing investors, however, this will devalue the bonds they currently hold, pushing down their value on the secondary market relative to new, higher-interest assets.

Returning to our original question, are your Treasury bonds safe? The answer is mixed.

If you are a long term investor whose goal is to collect interest payments until an asset’s maturity, then your investment is probably safe. You may see a brief disruption in your bonds’ repayment schedule, but that is unlikely to last very long. Beyond that, it is still extremely unlikely that you will lose money on this asset.

If you want to sell your bonds at any point, you will very likely lose money. The value of existing bonds will almost certainly fall (possibly quite significantly) in the event of a default.

If you are a future investor, you will probably improve your yields as the increased costs of U.S. borrowing push up the interest rates on future Treasury bonds.

But it’s critical to understand that this is entirely speculative. A U.S. default would cause chaos across every financial market, from investments to employment to borrowing and beyond. Borrowing and credit of every kind would get more expensive, likely pushing up prices in most markets and pushing prices down on most investments. There is no clear way to predict what would happen in this environment, even if these are a series of likely outcomes.

The Bottom Line

If Congress defaults on the U.S. debt, the first assets hit will be Treasury bills, bonds and notes. For current investors this will likely mean chaos. You can most likely expect Treasury payments in full, even if not on time, but secondary market returns will almost certainly plummet.

Risk Management Tips

Even if Treasury assets are supposed to be immune from risk, it’s still a part of investing overall. Managing that is a key part of managing your money.
The best way to prepare for risk is with good advice. A financial advisor can help. Finding a financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to three vetted financial advisors who serve your area, and you can interview your advisor matches at no cost to decide which one is right for you.

Photo credit: ©iStock.com/William_Potter, ©iStock.com/Douglas Rissing

Eric Reed
Eric Reed is a freelance journalist who specializes in economics, policy and global issues, with substantial coverage of finance and personal finance. He has contributed to outlets including The Street, CNBC, Glassdoor and Consumer Reports. Eric’s work focuses on the human impact of abstract issues, emphasizing analytical journalism that helps readers more fully understand their world and their money. He has reported from more than a dozen countries, with datelines that include Sao Paolo, Brazil; Phnom Penh, Cambodia; and Athens, Greece. A former attorney, before becoming a journalist Eric worked in securities litigation and white collar criminal defense with a pro bono specialty in human trafficking issues. He graduated from the University of Michigan Law School and can be found any given Saturday in the fall cheering on his Wolverines.

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Source: smartasset.com

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

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In June 2012, the financial world was rocked by a scandal that was likely decades in the making: Powerful United Kingdom-based Barclays, a universal bank involved in setting global financial rates, had been manipulating the system. Moreover, they were likely in cahoots with others.

The rate in question was the long-standing benchmark rate known as Libor (London interbank offered rate). Its purpose was to set the interest rates banks used when doing business among themselves, though it also impacted customer rates and therefore acted as a barometer for economic stability.

New concerns over its vulnerability to manipulation has the powers that be searching for a more reliable and transparent benchmark rate. And many have settled on the secured overnight financing rate, or SOFR. But what is it, and is it really any better than Libor?

What Is the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (SOFR)?

SOFR is a benchmark interest rate that reflects the cost of borrowing cash overnight, as collateralized by Treasury securities in the United States. That means there’s real money backing it up. It was introduced by the Alternative Reference Rates Committee to provide a more robust and reliable alternative to Libor.

LIBOR relied on self-reported interbank lending rates — the rates the banks were manipulating to mutual benefit. Rather than simply report the rate they lent money at, they got together to make the rates something mutually beneficial.

Basically, they could make the Libor number lower to make their bank more appealing to customers — and potentially look like they and the economy were in better shape than they really were. Plus, since they knew what it would be and when, they could time their trades.

But SOFR represents a shift toward a secured and transaction-based reference rate. Such a change addresses the vulnerabilities and manipulation concerns associated with LIBOR by basing it on real numbers used by real banks. They can keep calling each other and chitchatting about it, but now, they have to put their money where their mouths are.

Calculating SOFR

The powers that be calculate SOFR using a methodology that considers a wide range of overnight repurchase agreement (repo) transactions. Repos are agreements in which one party sells government securities — Treasury bills, bonds, and notes — to another, promising to buy them back later at a higher price. It’s essentially a low-risk way to borrow money temporarily (quite literally overnight).

The SOFR calculation uses transactions on the tri-party repo market, the general collateral finance repo market, and bilateral repo transactions. Though each of those operates slightly differently, they all involve using government securities as collateral for loans.

To get the SOFR, you take the volume-weighted median of those transactions. Volume-weighting ensures the more common transactions influence the number more heavily without discounting the lower-volume transactions.

These transactions provide a comprehensive and representative view of overnight borrowing costs in the Treasury collateral market.

Key Features & Characteristics

SOFR captures the true cost of borrowing in the overnight market, enabling market participants to accurately assess funding costs and make informed decisions. It has several unique characteristics that enable it to operate reliably and transparently.

It all happens overnight. SOFR is an overnight rate, meaning it reflects borrowing costs for a 24-hour period. It provides timely information on borrowing costs, enables comparisons over time, and serves as a reliable benchmark that reflects real economic indicators.
It’s collateralized. SOFR is backed by collateral in the form of Treasury securities. Since the transactions are secured, there’s greater stability and transparency compared to unsecured rates like Libor.
It’s low-risk and stable. Basing the benchmark on low-risk Treasury securities reduces the potential for financial instability or shocks that could arise from using a more volatile or risky reference rate. In turn, that helps ensure the rates are fair and sustainable and provides stability, reliability, and confidence in financial markets, protecting investors and promoting a more secure financial environment.
It’s transaction-based. Unlike Libor, which relies on banks’ submissions, SOFR is transaction-based. It is derived from observable market transactions. That means the money is always real and not subject to influence by shady dealers looking to pad their pocketbook by massaging the numbers.
It’s publicly available. The transaction data used in SOFR’s calculation is publicly available, allowing market participants to understand the underlying market dynamics, have a clearer view of borrowing costs, and double-check the powers that be. Libor was essentially anecdotal, leaving it wide open to “creative interpretation.”
It’s based on the secured funding market. Alignment with the secured funding market ensures SOFR accurately reflects the funding costs market participants face, enhancing its usefulness as a benchmark rate and preventing self-serving rate-fixing.
It works with many financial instruments. SOFR is widely used as a benchmark rate in various financial transactions. It serves as a foundational reference for pricing and valuing financial instruments, including derivatives, loans, and securities. Its broad usage highlights its acceptance and recognition as a reliable benchmark.

Importance of SOFR as a Benchmark Rate (Over Libor)

The transition from Libor to alternative reference rates like SOFR is a global endeavor driven by the need for more reliable and robust benchmarks. Libor’s susceptibility to manipulation has had consequences, including reducing lending among banks.

Banks are more cautious about lending to one another thanks to poor decisions that caused the 2008 financial crisis. The crisis itself led to more stringent regulations, further compounding the issue.

The shift to SOFR ensures greater stability and integrity in the financial system, reducing the risks associated with Libor, which should energize lending, barring other financial dilemmas or disasters.

SOFR has gained widespread adoption as a benchmark rate in various financial transactions. It serves as a foundation for pricing and valuing financial instruments like derivatives, loans, and securities. Market participants use SOFR as a reference point to determine interest rates, reset terms, and calculate payments for these instruments.

Its broad usage reflects the industry’s recognition of SOFR as a reliable and representative benchmark.

Pros & Cons of SOFR

There’s no such thing as a perfect benchmark rate. While the pros outweigh the cons of SOFR, especially as compared to Libor, it’s important to understand exactly what SOFR can and can’t do.

Advantages of SOFR

When it comes to SOFR, the biggest advantage is that it isn’t Libor. As such, many of its advantages are inherent in its features. SOFR is:

Robust, Realistic, and Observable. It’s based on actual transaction data from a diverse range of overnight repo transactions, ensuring a more reliable and accurate benchmark rate. It relies on observable market data rather than subjective bank submissions, reducing the potential for manipulation and enhancing integrity.
Transparent. SOFR offers greater transparency compared to Libor. The transaction data it uses is publicly available, allowing market participants to understand the underlying market dynamics and have confidence in the benchmark’s reliability.
Secure. SOFR represents borrowing costs backed by Treasury securities, making it a secured rate. That aligns closely with the secured funding markets and provides a more accurate reflection of borrowing costs. The collateralized nature of SOFR enhances stability, reducing the reliance on unsecured lending rates and lowering the risks associated with fluctuations in interbank borrowing.
Low-risk. Backing the rate with reliable collateral helps mitigate the risks associated with the unsecured nature of Libor. By being collateralized, SOFR provides greater certainty and stability in the financial system. It reduces the potential for market disruptions and enhances the resilience of the benchmark rate.
Resilient. The transition to SOFR contributes to building a more resilient financial system. The robust methodology, transparency, and secured nature of SOFR ensure a reliable benchmark rate that is less prone to manipulation and volatility, thereby enhancing the stability and integrity of financial markets.
Aligned with real market conditions. SOFR closely reflects actual overnight Treasury security-backed borrowing costs. That provides market participants with a more accurate benchmark rate directly connected to funding costs, enabling better pricing, risk management, and decision-making.
Popular. SOFR has gained significant support from regulators, central banks, and industry bodies globally. The backing of these entities provides confidence in the adoption and reliability of SOFR as a replacement for Libor, ensuring widespread acceptance and usage.

Disadvantages of SOFR

The advantages of SOFR can be blinding. But it’s not without challenges, and everyone should be well informed about the potential drawbacks. Fortunately, many of the disadvantages are temporary and have to do with the transition to SOFR itself. SOFR is:

Resource-intensive (initially). The transition from Libor to SOFR requires changes across a wide range of financial systems that currently use Libor. Updating these systems to incorporate SOFR can be a complex and time-consuming process, requiring coordination among multiple stakeholders.
Operationally complex (initially). Market participants must make operational adjustments to accommodate SOFR. That includes updating internal systems, models, and processes to calculate and apply SOFR-based rates. Implementing these changes can present operational challenges and may require investments in technology and resources.
Time-consuming (initially). The transition to SOFR requires updating existing contracts and agreements that reference Libor. This process involves renegotiating and amending contracts. That and obtaining the necessary consent from counterparties can be a time-consuming and resource-intensive task.
Disruptive (initially). During the transition period, there is a risk of market disruptions and potential market volatility. There may be temporary disruptions, pricing uncertainties, and liquidity challenges in certain financial markets. Efforts are underway to minimize these disruptions, but you can’t eliminate them entirely.
Complex (initially). The successful transition to SOFR requires extensive coordination among market participants, regulators, and industry bodies. Ensuring consistent adoption and implementation across various sectors and jurisdictions is a complex task that requires collaboration, information sharing, and regulatory guidance.
Risky (initially). There may be “basis risk” associated with the transition from Libor to SOFR. Basis risk refers to the potential mismatch or discrepancy between rates based on Libor and rates based on SOFR. Market participants need to carefully manage this risk and ensure appropriate adjustments or hedging strategies are in place.
New and less reflexive (initially). The adoption of SOFR requires widespread education and awareness among market participants. Participants need to understand the nuances of SOFR, its calculation methodology, and its implications for their specific financial instruments and contracts. Education initiatives and outreach programs are crucial to facilitate a smooth transition.

Ongoing efforts by regulators, industry bodies, and market participants aim to address these challenges and ensure a successful transition to SOFR. These groups have created various working groups, guidelines, and best practices to provide guidance and support the industry throughout this process.

Final Word

It may not seem like benchmark rates affect regular people all that much. But they do.

They impact the interest rates on loans, such as mortgages, car loans, and student loans. When benchmark rates go up, borrowing costs tend to increase, making it more expensive for individuals to borrow money. Fortunately, the reverse is also true. That’s why the TV talking heads babble on about the federal funds rate so much.

Benchmark rates can also influence savings and investment returns. When benchmark rates are low, interest rates on savings accounts and fixed-income investments tend to be lower, while higher benchmark rates can provide better returns on savings and investments.

But even if none of that applies to you, benchmark rates can affect the overall economic environment. They impact factors like inflation, employment rates, and economic growth, which in turn can influence job prospects, wages, and the general cost of living for regular people.

So if you pay attention to no other financial indicators, pay attention to this one.

Heather Barnett has been an editor and writer for over 20 years, with over a decade committed to the financial services industry. She joined the Money Crashers team in 2020, covering banking and credit content for banking- and credit-weary readers. In her off time, she enjoys baking, binge-watching crime dramas, and doting on her beloved pets.

Source: moneycrashers.com

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

Demand for mortgage loans declined last week as mortgage rates reached their highest level since 2008, crossing the 6% threshold.

The market composite index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume by the Mortgage Bankers Association, fell 1.2% for the week ending Sep. 9, compared to the previous week. It was also down 64% compared to the same week in 2021.

The refinance index had a 4.2% decline from the previous week and fell 83% from the same week in 2021. Meanwhile, according to the MBA, the purchase index was down 0.15% from the previous week and decreased 28% from the same week in 2021.

“The 30-year fixed mortgage rate hit the 6% mark for the first time since 2008, which is essentially double what it was a year ago,” said Joel Kan, MBA’s associate vice president of economic and industry forecasting, in a statement. “Higher mortgage rates have pushed refinance activity down more than 80% from last year and have contributed to more homebuyers staying on the sidelines.”

Due to the Federal Reserve’s aggressive tightening monetary policy to combat persistent inflation, the housing market is expected to cool down.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 0.1% from the month in August, after remaining unchanged in July, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Tuesday. From a year earlier, prices rose 8.3%, a slight deceleration from July, driven primarily by the recent declines in gasoline prices.

Fraud risk continues to rise even as the market contracts

According to a Q2 analysis by FundingShield, there was a 40.69% increase in wire-related issues compared to Q1 2022. Among today’s lower volumes, the need to keep costs down while still managing risks has never been greater.

Presented by: FundingShield

The hotter-than-expected inflation level ensures that the Fed will hike interest rates aggressively at its upcoming September meeting to tamp down inflation. Another 75 basis point hike could even be on the cards in October.

Consequently, mortgage rates surged on Tuesday. The 30-year fixed rate was at 6.28%, up 30 basis points from Monday, according to Mortgage News Daily.

According to the latest survey from Freddie Mac, the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rose last week to an average of 5.89%, up from the previous week’s 5.66%. The index compiles only purchase mortgage rates reported by lenders during the past three days.

MBA’s estimate, however, indicated the average contract 30-year fixed-rate mortgage for conforming loans ($647,200 or less) rose to 6.01% this week to the highest level since 2008, from the previous week’s 5.94%. Jumbo mortgage loans (greater than $647,200) increased to 5.56% from 5.46% in the same period.

The MBA data shows the refinance share of all mortgage activity fell marginally to 30.2% of total applications this week from the previous week’s 30.7%.

The Federal Housing Administration’s (FHA) share of total applications increased to 13.4% from the previous week’s 13.3%. The Veterans Affairs’s (VA) share of applications rose to 11.3%, from 10.8%, and the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) share went from 0.6% to 0.7%.

The share of adjustable-rate mortgages (ARM) applications increased to 9.1% this week, from 8.5% of total applications last week. According to the MBA, the average interest rate for a 5/1 ARM increased to 4.83% from 4.81% a week prior.

“The spread between the conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate and both ARM and jumbo loans remained wide last week, at 118 and 45 basis points, respectively. The wide spread underscores the volatility in capital markets due to uncertainty about the Fed’s next policy moves,” Kan said.

The survey, conducted weekly since 1990, covers 75% of all U.S. retail, residential mortgage applications.

Source: housingwire.com

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

With the grand coronation of King Charles III (finally) taking place in Britain over the weekend, our thoughts turned to royal accommodations—specifically castles, with their turrets, tapestries, and stone fireplaces.

You don’t need to live in Europe to enjoy these old-world luxuries. Here in the good ol’ USA, there are plenty of dwellings that are royally inspired.

And you don’t even have to pay a king’s ransom to live in one. We found five for your viewing pleasure, all priced below $950,000.

So between viewing the royal pomp and circumstance in jolly old England, you might want to take a few minutes to browse the regal residences available in the United States.

Price: $780,000
Spanish style: The Brits aren’t the only ones with castles. There was castle-dwelling aristocracy throughout Europe, and here’s an example of a modern one inspired by the castles of Spain. Set on 5 acres, this 2010-built home has views of Pinos Altos and Silver City.

With three bedrooms and two baths in 3,234 square feet of living space, this castillo (Spanish for “castle”) features a fireplace big enough to roast game, should you be so inclined, and a hobby room that could serve as a chapel, the listing notes.

The rest of the house is distinctly modern, with tiled floors and a kitchen with stainless-steel appliances and a large island.

Silver City, NM

(Realtor.com)

———

Price: $525,000
Gothic gem: A combination castle and chalet, this stone dwelling must have been built by an artist with a regal sensibility. Known as Owl Studio, the property consists of two separate structures, both eco-friendly and constructed from wood and stone.

Their gothic architecture features pointed arches on the doors and windows. The two-story tower offers 360-degree views, a half-bath, and rough-ins for a shower and a kitchen. It will need to be finished and furnished.

The chalet structure has a dramatic stone fireplace and a cozy sleeping loft. Together the unique dwellings could be developed into a short-term rental, an art or podcast studio, or a wellness retreat and yoga studio.

There’s plenty of room for more structures on the 6-acre lot high in the mountains, not far from Fort Collins.

Feather Lakes, CO

(Realtor.com)

———

Price: $899,900
Castle by the lake: This landmark residence was built in 2007 on the shores of Lake Mary Jane and comes with a private pier.

The 3,027-square-foot home with four bedrooms and 3.5 baths was bestowed two titles: Knightsbridge Manor and the Castle in the Pines. It features wood-clad barrel ceilings, a stone staircase, and a solid walnut front door with iron hardware.

The lot measures a third of an acre and features a fire pit and a newly built chicken coop. (Egg-laying chickens are included in the sale.) This castle is said to be the jewel of the amenity-filled, lakefront community known as the Isle of Pines.

Orlando, FL

(Realtor.com)

———

Price: $695,000
Oh my, Ohio! This castle-inspired Victorian was built in 1898 in this quaint town about 77 miles southwest of Toledo.

With six bedrooms and three baths in 4,316 square feet of living space, the stately home near the center of town is just brimming with possibilities. It could be used as a family home, an events venue, or a charming bed-and-breakfast. The formal dining room, exquisitely outfitted kitchen, and the parlors with fireplaces lend themselves well to any of these options.

We’re particularly enamored with the carved-wood detailing, the picturesque reading nook, and the handy butler’s pantry.

Van Wert, OH

(Realtor.com)

———

Price: $935,000
Contemporary castle: Located in Walled Lake, this 2004-built manor boasts water views from many of its rooms.

The grounds span two parcels with a pond and fountain in back. The upscale home has four bedrooms and four baths in 2,241 square feet of living space. A grand spiral staircase connects its three levels.

The open floor plan includes a spacious kitchen with a large island and breakfast nook and a finished basement with a bar and a powder room.

The property is close to hiking and biking paths, as well as boating facilities and accommodations for the royal barge.

Novi, MI

(Realtor.com)

Source: realtor.com

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

Businesses pay market research companies to gather information on what customers like you think. Those market research companies, in turn, pay customers like you to provide that information.

The good news is, this is no longer limited to in-person focus groups. You can now participate in market research from the comfort of your home. You can sign up for apps and sites that will pay you to answer questions.

But some survey apps pay more than others, and they don’t all offer the same types of rewards. Here’s my selection of the best survey apps for money out there if you’re looking to make a little extra money.

What’s Ahead:

Survey Junkie

Rewards for: completing surveys, participating in focus groups, testing products, and sharing web behavior
Redemption options: PayPal credits, bank account transfers, and gift cards for brands like Amazon, Target, Walmart, etc.
Mobile app ratings: 4.6 App Store; 4.3 Google Play

Survey Junkie users start by filling out questionnaires and building their user profiles, which give the platform an idea of their interests and lifestyle. These profiles are then matched to survey opportunities.

Surveys show up in a user’s personal dashboard, and the user can choose which surveys they would like to participate in based on the survey’s pre-disclosed topic, point value, and estimated time of completion.

Completed surveys earn points, which can then be redeemed for PayPal credit, bank transfers, or gift cards. Those who complete three surveys per day can reportedly earn up to $40 worth of credits or gift cards per month. More time-consuming activities like focus groups can earn a higher number of points.

In addition to paid surveys, users can also elect to participate in ‘behavioral research,’ in which they share their web search, browsing, engagement, and shopping history with the platform to earn extra points.

SurveyJunkie is open to residents of the United States, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom, ages 16+.

Try Survey Junkie now.

MyPoints

Rewards for: taking polls, doing online surveys, watching videos, playing games, online shopping, downloading coupons
Redemption options: gift cards for Visa, PayPal, or a number of popular retailers
Mobile app ratings: 4.3 App Store; 3.4 Google Play

MyPoints pays you to give your opinion on a wide range of consumer topics, from cars to clothes to home and garden supplies. Payouts for completed surveys range substantially, with some of the more time-consuming surveys offering up to $50 worth of points. Short surveys might yield $1 in points.

Aside from surveys, MyPoints also rewards you for shopping online, which is actually my favorite aspect of the app. It links up to popular retailers I already use, like Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Home Depot, among many others. That means I’m earning points for money I’d be spending anyway.

Best of all, MyPoints helps you save. Not only can you apply coupons to your purchases with your favorite retailers, but you actually earn rewards for downloading them. When combined with the points you’re getting for shopping, you can quickly rack up rewards.

MyPoints lets you cash in your rewards in a couple ways. You can choose gift cards from popular brands like Bath & Body Works, Sephora, or Walmart, or you can convert points to PayPal cash.

Try MyPoints or read our full review.

Swagbucks

Rewards for: completing online surveys, in-home product surveys, playing games, shopping
Redemption options: gift cards from Amazon, Walmart, Target, and Visa or PayPal cash
Mobile app ratings: 4.4 App Store; 4.2 Google Play

If you want to earn dough just for browsing the internet, Swagbucks is a great option. You won’t be able to quit your day job, but it’s a great way to earn a little extra spending money each month. 100 Swagbucks points are worth $1, and most surveys pay out between 40 to 200 points each. Some active users report making a couple of hundred bucks a month with the app.

What I like most about Swagbucks is the variety of points-earning options. Sure, you can earn rewards for answering surveys and shopping, but you also earn by simply trading in Google for the Swagbucks search engine. You’ll be adding points to your total in the background while you search the web and browse various sites.

Once you’ve earned enough points, you can trade them in for gift cards at some of the most popular retailers. You won’t see as many gift card options as you get with other survey sites, but all the big names are there. For instance, Amazon, Apple, Walmart, and Target gift cards are usually available.

Try Swagbucks now.

YouGov

Rewards for: completing paid surveys
Redemption options: cash direct deposit, gift cards
Mobile app ratings: 4.7 App Store; 4.4 Google Play

What drew me to YouGov is the fact that the collected information is sometimes cited online and in news reports. Knowing I’m a part of the group that is referenced in, “According to a survey from YouGov” is an incentive to participate, especially if I’m paid for my feedback.

The biggest issue with YouGov is that it combines paid survey opportunities with those that pay nothing. You’re free to complete those just to take part in the information being collected and distributed. Some members found that paid opportunities were few and far between.

Despite its name, YouGov doesn’t just collect information on political issues. As with other survey sites, you’ll be polled about your thoughts on brands and services.

Try YouGov now.

Opinion Outpost

Rewards for: taking surveys, testing products, watching advertisements
Redemption options: PayPal cash, Visa prepaid cards, gift cards for popular merchants
Mobile app ratings: N/A

You can earn around 10 to 250 points per completed survey with Opinion Outpost, which can add up over the course of a day.

Rewards can be redeemed for a relatively limited selection of gift cards, but the selection at least usually includes major brands like Amazon, Apple, Target, Macy’s, Home Depot, etc. Most gift cards require 100 points for a $10 card value.

One downside to Opinion Outpost is that you’ll have to prequalify before you can take a survey. This is done by answering a few questions before the survey’s available. If you don’t qualify, you’ll be entered in a drawing for a quarterly prize, but it can feel like you put more time in to find a survey you can finally complete.

Another potential downside is that Opinion Outpost isn’t available as a mobile app, so if you’re on the go a lot you’ll have to access the platform from a web browser on your phone.

Join Opinion Outpost now.

Branded Surveys

Rewards for: completing paid surveys
Redemption options: Amazon or Visa gift card, or a PayPal payment
Mobile app ratings: 1.5 App Store

Formerly known as MintVine, Branded Surveys offers rewards for survey participants in the U.S., Canada, and the UK. It partners with some of the top names in the industry, including Nielsen and Harris Interactive. As such, you’ll have more confidence that your feedback will make an impact.

One thing that sets Branded Surveys apart is the volume of surveys. You’ll have to qualify for each one, but having a wider range of options makes it more likely that you’ll find one that’s a match. A great thing about Branded Surveys is if you put time into completing a survey, only to ultimately find out that you don’t qualify, you’ll still be paid a few cents.

Branded Surveys typically pays between $0.50 to $5.00 per survey. You can cash out once you reach 500 points. Aside from the usual gift cards or PayPal credits, with Branded Surveys you can also choose to direct your accumulated points toward a US charity, which is unusual among survey apps.

Join Branded Surveys now.

Pinecone Research

Rewards for: online surveys
Redemption options: PayPal cash payments, paper checks, prepaid cards, or gift cards
Mobile app ratings: 2.4 App Store; 3.0 Google Play

From respected industry leader Nielsen (of Nielsen Ratings fame), Pinecone Research is a great way to earn rewards while also feeling as though your voice is being heard. To get started with Pinecone Research, you simply sign up and wait for approval. Once you’re approved, you’ll start receiving invitations to participate in surveys.

After you’ve set up an account, you’ll be able to view the rewards available, as well as the points you’ll need to earn them. You can trade your points in on small rewards or save up for something bigger. As long as your account remains active, your points never expire. You can also opt to trade your points in for cash, deposited to your account.

One thing that sets Pinecone Research apart is that sometimes members are mailed physical products to try out. In many cases, you get to keep the items after you’ve completed the survey. Some brands ask that you send the products back, though.

Surveys and products are distributed based on the questionnaire information you provide. Many brands request specific audience demographics, so some members receive more offers than others. This makes the questionnaire you complete at signup especially important.

Join Pinecone Research now.

MySoapBox

Rewards for: completing surveys
Redemption options: gift cards from popular merchants, including Amazon, Walmart, and Starbucks
Mobile app ratings: N/A

MySoapBox focuses on surveys, rewarding you for answering questions about products, services, and experiences. It’s available as a web app only, not a mobile app.

1,000 points equate to a $1 value, and you’ll generally get between 750 and 1,500 points per completed survey. You need a minimum of 25,000 points to redeem for a gift card.

MySoapBox is a part of Interviewing Service of America (ISA), one of the largest US-based market research companies. They’ve collected data for businesses since 1982, historically through telemarketing and in-person focus groups, and today facilitating an online option via MySoapBox.

Join MySoapBox now.

Intellizoom

Rewards for: taking surveys
Redemption options: PayPal
Mobile app ratings: N/A

Intellizoom doesn’t mess with rewards and points; you’ll instead earn cash for completing surveys. They don’t send you actual dollar bills, of course. You’ll be paid electronically via PayPal within 21 business days of your survey responses being approved.

The amount you’re paid is based on the complexity of the survey. You can earn up to $10 for more challenging surveys, such as those that require you to record audio or video. Simple surveys usually pay around $2 each.

You may find yourself not as active as you want to be, though. As with other survey sites, you have to wait until you’re invited to participate. Typically, invitations are based on demographics, but you’ll also be graded on the quality of your surveys. You can boost your earnings by making an extra effort to provide useful, well-constructed feedback.

Without an app, you are limited to using the site in a browser. If you can get enough of the more challenging surveys, you could make a decent chunk of change from this site.

Join Intellizoom now.

How I came up with this list

Yes, some survey-for-cash sites can be scammy. It may even sound too good to be true. When I was researching top survey apps and sites, I first narrowed it down to the reputable ones, reading reviews and making sure people had actually gotten paid for their efforts.

Once I had a list of trustworthy sites, I further sharpened it to make sure you were getting the best of the best. Here are the features I considered in my research:

Options for earning points
Redemption options
Difficulty in earning enough points to get rewards
Turnaround time for getting paid after cashing in points

Keep in mind that scams aren’t the only thing to worry about with survey sites. You’ll find that with some sites, the amount of work you have to put in to get even a $10 gift card is far more than with other sites. You can speed up that turnaround time by choosing a site that lets you accumulate points for doing other things, including shopping, gaming, or participating in the site’s community.

How to take surveys for money

A survey app gathers information from consumers, often in exchange for a small amount of pay. You’ll sign up, provide some demographic information, then apply to complete surveys. Taking surveys that you qualify for might be rewarded with gift cards, prepaid cards, or PayPal transfers.

If you’re looking for a way to make a little extra money, a survey app can help. But some people sign up for the rewards, only to find that the real enjoyment comes from providing feedback. The information you provide is used to help businesses improve everything from product design to marketing efforts, so your opinion can be a huge benefit to all consumers.

Those with a little extra time on their hands will likely find a survey app is a great fit. If you’re looking to make hundreds of dollars a week, though, you’ll probably be disappointed.

Most important features of survey apps

Ready to get started? If so, here are some features to consider as you’re shopping around for a survey app.

Points-earning options

What do you have to do to earn points? Surveys are only one option. You can also find apps that will let you earn points for doing web searches, shopping online, watching videos, and more. Also, consider the types of surveys the site offers. Many will simply ask you about your feelings on products or services, but there are some that are political in nature.

Rewards offered

If you’re looking for cold, hard cash, you’ll need to first weed out the sites that only offer gift cards. Although if you’re like me, a gift card to a retailer like Amazon or Walmart can be as good as cash. Many survey apps also allow you to cash out via PayPal, which is accepted at a wide range of online retailers.

Ease of finding surveys

Ideally, you’ll sign up for a site and be able to complete as many surveys as you want. Unfortunately, that isn’t how it always works. Many companies are looking for data from a very specific demographic, so you’ll only be able to participate in some of the available surveys.

FAQs

Are paid survey apps legit?

Even when a survey site is legitimate, it may not pay as much for your time as you’d like. It’s important to note that you should never pay to participate in a survey site. You can find plenty that will let you sign up for free and will pay you, rather than the money flowing in the other direction.

Are survey websites worth it?

Paid survey websites can be a way to earn a little extra cash, but whether they are worth it depends on your personal situation and goals.

While taking surveys may not take a lot of effort, it can be time-consuming. You may need to spend a significant amount of time taking surveys to earn a meaningful amount of money. Most survey sites offer relatively low compensation, so it’s important to consider whether the payout is worth your time investment.

There may be quicker ways for you to make money.

How quickly do survey apps pay you?

Turnaround time can vary, but once you have your points, many of these sites will have your rewards to you within a few days of your request. Some sites that pay in cash may take as long as 21 days, so be sure to plan ahead if you’re depending on the money.

How do paid survey apps make their money?

For decades, companies have depended on focus groups to provide information on market sentiment. Survey apps simply take the process online, letting you participate in surveys without having to go to a designated physical location. Businesses pay market research companies to gather data and provide it, then use the information to inform their own business decisions moving forward.

How I came up with this list

Yes, some online survey sites can be scammy. It may even sound too good to be true. When I was researching top survey apps and sites, I first narrowed it down to the reputable ones, reading reviews and making sure people had actually gotten paid for their efforts.

Once I had a list of reputable survey apps, I further sharpened it to make sure you were getting the best of the best. Here are the features I considered in my research:

Options for earning points
Redemption options
Difficulty in earning enough points to get rewards
Turnaround time for getting paid after cashing in points

Keep in mind that scams aren’t the only thing to worry about with online survey sites. You’ll find that with some sites, the amount of work you have to put in to get even a $10 gift card is far more than with other sites. You can speed up that turnaround time by choosing a survey site that lets you accumulate points for doing other things, including shopping, gaming, or participating in the site’s community.

Summary

Survey apps can be a decent side hustle to make a little extra money within a low-stress framework. But even the highest paying survey apps don’t pay well enough to serve as a replacement for your regular job.

Aside from earning gift cards or cash for your completed surveys, participating in market research can be rewarding in other ways. You’ll know your feedback is being used to influence the direction businesses take, making any rewards you receive a bonus.

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

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Do you dream of seeing the world but don’t have a fat travel fund to do it? Today, there are more opportunities than ever to travel the world on the cheap — or even for free.

My wife and I visit an average of 10 countries every year, all on her salary alone. No, she’s not an investment banker or neurosurgeon. She’s a school counselor with a salary comparable to a teacher.

Part of our travel strategy involves visiting inexpensive countries and looking for low-cost accommodations through Airbnb and local guesthouses. But the primary reasons we can afford to see the world are all the ways we’ve found to travel for free.

Travel Tips to See the World for Free

Some of these options offer free accommodations, others offer free transportation, and a few offer both. They all come with limitations and trade-offs, but for anyone looking to travel on a tiny budget, these travel tips are hard to beat.

One quick note: We’ll talk about maximizing credit card rewards in more detail below, but we do want to mention upfront that you should always use a rewards credit card to book travel and make purchases abroad. (Those you can’t avoid using these free travel strategies, that is.)

Our top travel rewards credit card pick is the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. Its selling points include:

An excellent sign-up bonus
An annual $50 hotel credit against eligible hotel bookings through Chase Travel, making it one of the best hotel credit cards on the market
5x points on eligible Chase Travel purchases after the $50 hotel credit is exhausted
3x points on eligible purchases, including restaurant dining, select streaming service purchases, and online grocery purchases
2x points on all other eligible travel purchases

And now for the most reliable strategies to save money while traveling the world.

1. Work Abroad in Expat-Friendly Industries

There are plenty of expat-friendly job options overseas, from international nurses and doctors to au pairs to educators to engineers.

Teaching abroad is how my wife and I can afford to do so much traveling. She works at an American school in Abu Dhabi. It provides us both with round-trip flights home every summer, free upscale housing that includes a gym, pool, and jacuzzi, and comprehensive health insurance. Oh, and there’s no income tax in the United Arab Emirates.

Living in Abu Dhabi has allowed us to travel all over the world. We flew nonstop to Bulgaria for $185 round-trip. We spent even less on nonstop round-trip flights to Cyprus. Every time we fly back to the United States, we make a stopover in Europe for a few days to enjoy gastronomy in Lyon, the Christmas markets in Munich, or the nightlife in Amsterdam.

There are thousands of international schools worldwide looking for qualified English-speaking employees, from IT specialists to administrators to teachers of all specialties. If you’re interested, check out international recruiting agency Search Associates.

Don’t have a teaching degree? You can still potentially teach English as a foreign language with a TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) certificate. But don’t expect the same benefits as credentialed teachers working at international schools.

Or keep it even simpler and research international positions for your existing skill set. You’d be surprised at the number of opportunities for Americans overseas.

2. Look for Work Exchanges

There are plenty of employers who provide free housing for short-term or even long-term stays in exchange for work. This arrangement is called a work exchange.

For example, if you’ve ever been intrigued by the idea of living and working on a farm, WWOOF is your chance to see the world while you do so. WWOOF stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms.

Farming is primarily seasonal work, and farmers need seasonal help. While they often have an abundance of space, housing, and food, many organic farmers don’t have an abundance of money. So in exchange for four to six hours’ help each day, they provide room and board. You’re on your own for the cost of transportation to get there, though.

You can go “WWOOF’ing” by yourself, as a couple, with friends, or even as a family with children. Select which country you’re interested in, and WWOOF will show you a list of host farms and connect you with the farmers.

And many hostels find themselves in a similar situation as organic farmers — with plenty of beds and rooms but short on labor. So they offer a free room (and sometimes free meals) in exchange for work. A few even pay a small stipend of spending money.

Check out HelpX, helpStay, and Workaway for thousands of opportunities worldwide to stay for free in exchange for your services.

3. House-Sit or Pet-Sit

Did you know there are entire websites dedicated to connecting house sitters with pet owners? Pet owners don’t want to leave their pets in kennels surrounded by unknown dogs and cats when they travel. They’d rather let them stay at home — a home which is just sitting vacant and unused.

House sitters can stay for free at these homes for the price of caring for the owners’ pets. While it’s a relatively easy job, it does mean you have to schedule your day around the pets’ needs. You can’t leave for a weekend excursion or go on 14-hour day trips. But for animal lovers, it can be an easy way to save money with free accommodations anywhere in the world, often in high-end homes.

And house-sitting isn’t limited to pet owners. Some homeowners sleep easier knowing someone is minding their home while they’re away, whether that means you care for their plants or are simply there to deter break-ins.

But these opportunities are the exception, not the rule, and most house-sitting gigs do involve caring for pets.

Try TrustedHousesitters as a starting point for free house-sitting gigs in many different countries.

4. Volunteer Long-Term With the Peace Corps

The Peace Corps offers incredibly rewarding opportunities to live for several years in a community that needs committed volunteers. While the Peace Corps is a large international organization, they do an excellent job of keeping their focus on the grassroots level. Volunteers go to the ends of the earth, living and working in the poorest communities on the planet.

The Peace Corps isn’t for everyone, though. It requires a 27-month commitment: three months of training, then two years in the field. You’ll also be leaving the comforts of Western democracy behind. You may or may not have mobile phone service, and you may not have air conditioning in hot climates.

You receive a living stipend, which is enough to cover housing (if they don’t provide you with a free place to stay), food, and basic spending in the community where you’re stationed. But when you come home to visit, don’t plan on fancy dinners out or hotels. Expect to crash with friends and family.

That said, you’ll have the opportunity to personally transform poor communities into livable, sustainable towns and villages. In many cases, you will literally save lives. If you’re truly driven to change the world and see some of it in the process, the Peace Corps may be a good fit for you.

5. Volunteer With Short-Term Volunteer Organizations

If your volunteer travel timeline is measured in weeks or months rather than years, try short-term volunteer placement services like Go Overseas or Idealist. They offer global opportunities for work ranging from teaching English to building infrastructure.

For a comfortable way to ease into international volunteering, try Diverbo. It hosts one-week English retreats in Spain and Germany to immerse non-Native English speakers in English-based activities. As a native speaker, you’re there to give them someone to practice with. It pays for hotel stays and meals. All you have to do is get there.

There are endless ways to volunteer abroad for free travel and rewarding experiences in a new culture. Spend an hour researching options online, and you can’t help but be inspired by the possibilities to give back while seeing the world.

6. Organize Your Own Volunteer Trip

You can also organize your own volunteer trip. With crowdfunding websites like GoFundMe, you can raise money from your friends, family members, and colleagues (and sometimes even strangers) to cover the costs of your volunteer trip. Perhaps they’ll even join you on your expedition.

But ensure your trip will genuinely change lives for needy people rather than serve as a cover story for you to persuade your friends to pay for your vacation.

I saw this happen just recently with a newly arrived couple at my wife’s school. They raised money from their friends back in the United States, inventing the name of an education-based “ministry” they claimed to be leading here in Abu Dhabi. It was an utter scam, as they have the same generous teaching package my wife does.

Whether they got away with it among their friends back home or not, they didn’t get away with it here. The link to their GoFundMe page made the rounds among the school faculty, and they’ve found few friends as a result.

So approach any crowdfunding attempts with complete sincerity and transparency.

7. Maximize Credit Card Rewards

If you have the right card, you can earn free plane tickets by putting purchases on your credit card. And many of the best travel rewards credit cards offer some enticing benefits. But that’s far from the only option for maximizing your rewards.

Many travel rewards cards, such as the Delta SkyMiles Platinum card from American Express, offer free or discounted companion vouchers every year. You can score a free flight from your rewards points plus a cheap or free flight for your travel partner from the companion voucher.

Then there are sign-up bonuses. Some are positively generous, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card‘s.

You can also maximize rewards by using your credit card every time you pay for flights. Some credit cards and partner airlines offer double or triple rewards — or higher — for booking flights.

There are loads of ways you can score free flights with rewards. Just don’t overspend in the name of saving money.

8. Capitalize on Loyalty Programs

Rewards don’t just come from credit cards. Airlines, hotel chains, and other travel businesses often offer loyalty points for frequent travelers.

If you always fly with the same airline, you can rack up frequent flyer miles. The same goes for hotels. These businesses sometimes offer brief promotions with killer deals to score points quickly and cheaply or accept fewer points than usual for flights or stays.

Travel forums and frugal travel blogs let you stay on top of current promotions.

9. Swap Houses

You live in Seattle and want to visit Berlin. Someone in Berlin wants to visit Seattle. Why not swap houses with them for your trip? It’s a win-win. You get to stay for free in an authentic local home rather than a hotel, and your home doesn’t have to sit vacant and vulnerable to catastrophes like break-ins or flooding.

Granted, it’s not always that simple. Perhaps you want to visit Berlin in July, and the Berliner wants to visit Seattle in October. Perhaps you’re worried about the risk of having a stranger stay in your home.

The good news is reputable home-swapping websites provide a level of transparency, with peer reviews and identity verification to give members greater peace of mind. Some home-swapping websites also offer credit systems for indirect house-swapping. By offering your house to others, you accumulate points or credits, which you can redeem at your leisure at houses all over the world. Think of it like couch surfing for grown-ups.

A few reputable house-swapping websites to try are HomeExchange, Love Home Swap, and HomeLink. But even if you’re using one of these services, always do your homework before agreeing to your first swap.

10. Travel to ‘The Old Country’ for Free

Some countries offer discover-your-roots programs for descendants to come back and visit the home of their ancestors. In most cases, these programs are designed for young adults to come and stay with local host families.

Programs include:

Whatever your heritage, do some research on private or government-funded programs to streamline your visit back to “the old country,” stay for free while there, and potentially even cover your airfare.

While you’re at it, you can also look into citizenship programs for descendants. For example, Italy has a generous citizenship program through which descendants who can prove an Italian ancestor are generally eligible for dual U.S.-Italian citizenship.

A close friend of mine who was born in Boston was able to dig up proof that his great-great-grandfather was Italian, and he now has an Italian passport and the option of living in the European Union if he so wishes.

11. Drive Someone’s Car Cross-Country

During cross-country moves, people sometimes need help moving their cars. That’s where you come in. Some car owners will pay you to move their vehicles from Point A to Point B within a specified time frame. In some cases, they also cover your flight home. There’s no better way to get to know a country, especially your own country, than driving it.

In my 20s, I spent two years moving across the country every few months with my then-girlfriend, a travel nurse. I drove across the country a half-dozen times and developed a fondness for and truer sense of the U.S. than I ever felt from flying and visiting cities for a weekend.

After sitting alone in a car for six hours, when you stop at a roadside diner for lunch, you’re more likely to strike up a conversation with the locals. You can end up meeting fascinating people while eating local favorites.

And these road trip experiences don’t necessarily have to happen within the U.S. People on every continent need their cars moved. Start with Auto Driveaway for U.S. and Canada car transports — and a free road trip.

12. Crew a Yacht or Cruise Ship

Just because you don’t know a slipknot from a half-Windsor doesn’t mean you can’t crew a boat. Yachts and cruise ships need crew members of all skill sets, from cooking to security to communications. The ship provides room and board plus a chance to see the world while sailing the Seven Seas and beyond.

But expect the hours to be long and the wages to be low. One of my friends spent a year working on a cruise ship. She reports she averaged five hours’ sleep every night they were at sea.

If you long for the sea life but are wary of cruise ships, look into yacht jobs instead. Several websites help connect yacht employers with crew members, including CrewSeekers, Yacrew, and Find a Crew.

13. Sit Through a Timeshare Presentation

I’ve taken plenty of free vacations through timeshare presentations. But it’s playing with fire, and it can cost you far more in the long term if you end up buying.

Timeshare sellers have their pitch down to a precise science. They’re the best salespeople you’ll ever meet. Take my father’s advice and commit before going that you won’t buy, write it down on a piece of paper, and pull that paper out of your pocket to read it when you feel an overwhelming desire to buy.

Think about it. If it weren’t so profitable, how could they possibly give away a free vacation to everyone who attends?

At the event, the salespeople make the initial presentation and offer. A few people buy at the opening price. Then, you sit down one-on-one with an expert salesperson, who pitches you personally, probing for weaknesses and customizing their pitch directly to you. Then they drop the price — a lot.

After they probe and coax and tempt you some more, they drop the price again — and then again and again. By their final offer, the price is a tiny fraction of the opening price from the original presentation, which is hard to pass up.

If you understand and accept the risk, you can scope out some of these deals at TimesharePresentationDeals.com.

14. Take Advantage of Overbooked Flights

You’ve probably experienced this one. The airline employee opens the intercom and announces, “We’re slightly overbooked for today’s flight and are offering a free flight voucher up to $500 for any passengers willing to take our next flight at 7pm.”

It’s not always practical to take them up on it. Sometimes, you need to get home for a pressing reason, such as a big meeting the next morning. But sometimes, it only costs you a few hours at the airport, and you stand to save a lot.

Typically, if no one takes the airline up on these offers, they escalate. They may start at a $300 voucher, then $500, then $700, and keep going until the offer is so astounding people race to the counter to take it. If the first offer isn’t worth the inconvenience to you, but you do have some flexibility, move closer to the counter and keep your ears open. Be ready to jump on the deal if it escalates enough to be worth your trouble.

A little flexibility can go a long way.

15. Open a Bask Bank Account

Most rewards programs require you to spend money — counterproductive to saving.

But Bask Bank rewards you with American Airlines miles for saving money, rather than spending it. Every dollar you save earns you 1 mile with American Airlines, every single year.

Best of all, Bank Bank doesn’t charge fees, so you get the rewards at no cost. Unlike credit cards, who fund their rewards programs with the interest paid by less savvy-cardholders who don’t pay their balances in full each month.

Final Word

The less glossy the travel experience, the more memorable, rewarding, and authentic it feels. I can’t tell you anything about the Bahamas Wyndham I stayed in when I was 23 and trying to impress a girlfriend. But I can give you every detail of the $19-per-night guesthouse in Telavi, Georgia (the country, not the state), where the owner poured us homemade wine from her own vines.

Stay flexible and open-minded, and you can find ways to travel the world for free. Just remember there’s usually some trade-off to free travel, and you need to understand it completely before committing.

G. Brian Davis is a real estate investor, personal finance writer, and travel addict mildly obsessed with FIRE. He spends nine months of the year in Abu Dhabi, and splits the rest of the year between his hometown of Baltimore and traveling the world.

Source: moneycrashers.com

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

We all know that the secret to getting insanely rich is to accumulate assets and avoid liabilities. The tricky part is knowing in advance which asset gets us there faster.

Before the technology boom, some may have picked San Francisco Real Estate and gone all-in, enabling them now to do a Cash-Out Refinance.

Others may have picked a relatively new asset like Bitcoin before the meteoric rise.

There are several success stories involving real estate, collectibles, and other assets that are not liquid or do not have a large trading market. Most of them involve a one-time buying decision and then a long holding period.

It is rare to consistently beat the market by trading over a long period, predominantly liquid markets such as stocks or commodities.

What if you could invest in a fund that had compounded annually at the rate of 63.3% over the last 30 years?

Welcome to the secretive world of Renaissance Technologies and the Medallion fund.

Who Owns Renaissance Technologies?

Jim Simons founded Renaissance Technologies, a former Cold war code breaker and a famous mathematician. He is known in the scientific community for co-developing the Chern–Simons theory. Simons also received the Oswald Veblen Prize of the American Mathematical Society, which is geometry’s highest honor.

In 1988, the firm established the Flagship Medallion Fund.

What Is the Medallion Fund?

Simons and algebraist James Ax started a hedge fund and named it Medallion in honor of the math awards that they had won. The Medallion fund used mathematical models to explore correlations from which they could profit.

In 1988, Simons had decided to base the company’s trades entirely on the models. However, by April 1989, peak-to-trough losses had amounted to about 30%.

Simons turned to Elwyn Berlekamp, a mathematics professor from UC Berkeley, to overhaul the trading system. Berlekamp was instrumental in evolving trading to shorter-dated, pure systems driven decision-making. Initially, the focus was on bonds, commodities, and currencies.

In 1993, Simons hired Bob Mercer and Peter Brown, who were working on speech recognition and machine translation at IBM research. This partnership proved highly successful as they cracked the equities market. For the fund to grow, many more assets were required. Equities had proven difficult for the Renaissance team to break. The addition of equities allowed the Medallion fund to scale to thousands of assets.

Performance of Medallion Fund

The performance of the Medallion fund has astounded everyone. If you had invested $1,000 in the Medallion Fund, after 30 years, you would now have $20 million (after fees). To put these numbers into perspective, a similar amount invested in the S&P 500 would be $20,000. And if you invested in Berkshire Hathaway, it would have grown to only $100,000.

No one in the investment world comes close to Jim Simons and his flagship Medallion fund. Warren Buffett, George Soros, Peter Lynch, Steve Cohen, and Ray Dalio all fall short.

Bradford Cornell analyzed the Medallion Fund and published a brief paper in the Journal Of Portfolio Management. He considered the Medallion fund as the ultimate challenge to the efficient market hypothesis.

“The performance of Renaissance Technologies’ Medallion fund is like I saw a T. Rex in my backyard. I just don’t get it.” -Bradford Cornell, Professor Emeritus UCLA

Furthermore, during the entire 31-year period, Medallion never had a negative return despite the dotcom crash and the financial crisis. Despite this remarkable performance, the fund’s market beta and factor loadings were all negative. So the Medallion Fund performance cannot be interpreted as a premium for risk-bearing.

To date, there is no adequate rational market explanation for this performance.

How Does Medallion Fund Work?

The Medallion fund embodies the “will robots take my job” sentiment prevalent on Wall Street.

Data

Since the early days, Renaissance has been collecting and curating vast data archives of everything. From economic metrics to the weather to trading sentiment and a million other variables. The interaction between these data sets and the direction of the security movement forms the base of their secret sauce.

Strategy

Medallion’s strategy involves holding thousands of short-term positions, both long and short, at any given time. The fund makes high-frequency trades but has also held positions for up to one or two weeks.

Algorithmic Trading

The Medallion Fund has employed mathematical models to analyze and execute trades, many of them automated. The firm uses computer-based models to predict price changes. These models are based on analyzing as much data as can be gathered, then looking for non-random movements to make predictions.

Leverage

The trades are made using a lot of leverage, which amplifies the gains. The only challenge with using leverage in trading is to manage risks appropriately. I believe Real Estate is still the best way to obtain a leveraged return without margin calls, as long as you know how to evaluate real estate deals.

Position Sizing

Depending on the conditions spewed out by the model, the size of the trade varies. That is an essential factor to note because I have personally made many bad investments. Keeping the position size of my trades as a fraction of my Net worth; ensured that my four worst investments did not ruin me.

Combining Several Small Wins

Robert Mercer, the former co-chief executive of Renaissance Technologies, allegedly told a friend that Medallion was right 50.75 percent of the time when it came to its millions of trades. “You can make billions that way, doing potentially hundreds of thousands or millions of trades. Even a small amount of profitability per trade turns out to be a big amount.”

That is similar to how a Casino makes profits. The house has a slight edge, and over some time, the volume of money adds up.

How Big Is Medallion Fund?

The Medallion fund manages roughly $10 billion in assets. The secret to their outperformance also lies in the fund size. They have never let the fund get too big. Whatever profit they make is paid out. That enables the firm to stay small and nimble.

How Do I Invest in the Medallion Fund?

If you are wondering how to invest in the Medallion Fund, the bad news is that you can’t.

The Medallion fund has been closed to outside investors since 1993. It is available only to current and past employees of Renaissance Technologies and their families.

Working at Renaissance Technologies only for the ability to invest in the Medallion Fund; is the ultimate example of improving human capital to accelerate Financial Freedom. The firm bought out the last investor in the Medallion fund in 2005, and the investor community has not seen its returns since then.

By 2012 Renaissance was granted a special exemption by the United States Labor Department, allowing employees to invest their retirement money in Medallion Fund, arguing that Medallion had consistently outperformed their old 401(k) plan. Imagine the tax free growth of all the pre-tax contributions!

Renaissance Technologies has strict rules that bar former employees from using their intellectual property at rival firms.

Simons told a New York conference last month that the company has almost no turnover among its 300 or so employees, many of whom are based on a 50-acre campus near Stony Brook University on Long Island, where Simons formerly headed the mathematics department.

We don’t have any turnover. We’re cautious. -Jim Simons, Renaissance Technologies

Performance of Other Renaissance Technologies Funds

While the pandemic caught everyone by surprise and even humbled Warren Buffet into selling his airline stocks at a loss, the Medallion Fund continued its outperformance. It gained 10% in March and 39% (before fees) through mid-April.

However, the other Renaissance Technology funds open to the public have not fared as well.

The Medallion fund employs a short-term, quantitative trading strategy across many asset classes. These include global equities, futures, commodities, and currencies. It also tends to have high turnover and significant leverage.

The Renaissance Institutional Equities (RIEF) Fund only trades in stock. The fund holds stocks for long periods.

The Renaissance Institutional Diversified Alpha (RIDA) Fund trades equities, derivatives, and various instruments in the global futures and forwards markets. Like RIEF, the RIDA fund holds significant individual positions, usually for long periods.

The Renaissance Institutional Diversified Global Equities (RIDGE) Fund trades equities and derivatives. It seeks to be market neutral by maintaining low levels of beta, or exposure to the broader market.

The lackluster performance of other Renaissance Technology funds could be due to the different strategies.

Final Thoughts on Medallion Fund

It is possible to beat index investing even over the long term. But it is such a rare occurrence that research papers and entire books are written about it.

Medallion Fund has had outsized performance, but would it continue is something no one knows.

Since the Medallion Fund is out of reach, I have decided to embark on Moonshot Investing. That is an asymmetric risk strategy where a portion of my Net Worth is invested in companies that, I believe, will outperform the broader markets over time. Instead of going all in, I dollar cost average to reduce my price entry and risk.

Dollar-cost averaging executes purchases weekly or more frequently as desired. I also exit positions once particular securities have an outsized gain in a short period.

John came from a third world country to the US with only $1,000, not knowing anyone, guided by an immigrant dream. In 12 years, he achieved his retirement number.

He started Financial Freedom Countdown -https://financialfreedomcountdown.com/ to help everyone think differently about their financial challenges and live their best lives. He resides in the San Francisco Bay Area, enjoying nature trails and weight training.

Source: yourmoneygeek.com

Apache is functioning normally

May 25, 2023 by Brett Tams

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According to The Vision Council of America, approximately 164 million Americans wear eyeglasses. Additionally, the average consumer reports spending nearly $130 for their frames, and almost 40% of wearers have two or more pairs of glasses.

Considering how expensive glasses are and the fact that they’re a necessity, it’s unsurprising it’s a $131 billion industry in the United States.

Thankfully, there are ways to save money on contact lenses and glasses if you know where and how to shop. Like many industries, online retailers make it easier to find high-quality prescription glasses at affordable prices. Plus, there are affordable in-store eyewear options if you know where to look.

Where to Buy Affordable Eyeglasses

There’s no reason to pay full price for your next frame upgrade or new pair of glasses. Each of these retailers offers great deals on affordable eyewear.

1. GlassesUSA

Limited time offer: Save 50% off frames for eyeglasses and sunglasses with basic Rx lenses + Free shipping to your doorstep. Some exclusions apply. Use coupon code MONEY-CRASHERS-50 at checkout.

Pros: Large clearance section; free shipping; student discount; extensive vision insurance network
Cons: Eyewear that isn’t on clearance isn’t as affordable as other options; expensive progressive lenses
Verdict: Check GlassesUSA for sales before buying from other online eyewear stores, but stick to their clearance section for savings

GlassesUSA is one of the most affordable ways to buy eyeglasses online. Glasses USA also carries contact lenses and sunglasses, but prescription eyewear is where this website shines. If you shop on clearance, you can get frames up to 60% off and 25% off prescription lenses.

GlassesUSA carries a range of brands and frame styles for adults and kids, including designer name-brand glasses like Ray-Ban, Coach, Oakley, and Givenchy. Use coupon code MONEYCRASHERS40 at checkout to save 40% on select adult designer frames, including Gucci, Prada, and Versace.

You can also buy blue-light-blocking glasses for any prescription for $29 extra. These glasses have lenses that filter emissions from electronic devices, reducing eyestrain.

Once you select a frame style, you can use a virtual mirror to see how the glasses suit your face shape. This feature requires uploading a photo or using your webcam. If you’re happy with the frame, choose your new lens type and submit your prescription before ordering. You can provide your prescription manually or upload a photo.

Frames start at $19 on clearance. Regular frames start at $39 but can range to several hundred dollars for designer pairs. Lens pricing varies depending on their type, although some lenses are included with the frame price:

Single Vision: Included in frame pricing
Near Vision: Included in frame pricing
Progressive: $94
Bifocal: $99
Nonprescription: Included in frame pricing

You can also upgrade your lens package if you want to add coatings for scratch resistance, ultraviolet (UV) protection, and antireflection. It costs approximately $10 to $30 more to upgrade bifocal lenses to the thinnest, highest-quality lenses. Upgrading progressive lenses costs an additional $20 to $60.

Finally, you can upgrade to transition lenses for $149 or buy prescription sunglass lenses with a color tint for an additional $29 or mirrored tint for $49.

GlassesUSA works with numerous vision insurance providers, including United Healthcare, Cigna, Davis Vision, Aetna, and Humana. You can also refer friends to GlassesUSA for a free Amazon gift card ($10), and the person you refer gets 10% off their first order.

For shipping, U.S. and Canadian orders are free. Most prescriptions take three to four business days to process. If you don’t like your glasses, you can return them for free within 14 days of arrival. This return policy makes GlassesUSA a risk-free way to buy eyeglasses online.

Shop Now

2. Warby Parker

Pros: Free shipping; high-quality eyewear at a reasonable price; extensive vision insurance network; offers lens replacements
Cons: Not the cheapest eyewear option
Verdict: Shop at Warby Parker if you want eyewear with a designer feel that’s still affordable, especially if you have insurance, and to utilize their free at-home try-on service

Unlike online eyeglass retailers, Warby Parker sells both online and in dozens of retail locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. Warby Parker isn’t the cheapest option for eyewear. But if you’re looking for designer quality and affordability, Warby Parker is still a contender.

Prescription eyeglasses start at $95 for adults, and this price includes single-vision lenses. Progressive lenses are an additional $200. Lenses are scratch-resistant, antireflective, and have UV protection. You can upgrade to blue-light-protective lenses for $50 or add transition lenses for $100.

Warby Parker also carries prescription sunglasses that start at $195 for single-vision lenses. Sunglasses with progressive lenses cost $375.

Orders have free shipping and returns, and you can also book an eye exam, including a contact lens fitting, for $75.

Warby Parker is certainly more expensive than websites like EyeBuyDirect. However, if you see how Warby Parker glasses are made, the price makes sense. Every frame is hand-assembled and polished and uses premium materials.

If you’re not satisfied with your pair, you have 30 days to return them for a full refund or exchange. You also have a one-year no-scratch guarantee for all eyewear.

Warby Parker can also replace your lenses if your prescription changes. Replacement fees vary depending on your prescription and the lenses you select, and this service is only available for Warby Parker frames.

But Warby Parker goes beyond virtual try-ons that the other websites use. Simply complete a short home try-on quiz, pick five frames you’re considering, and get them shipped to your home. When you find the right fit, finish your purchase online and ship the frames back to Warby Parker for free. Warby Parker ships to customers in the U.S., Guam, Puerto Rico, and Canada.

If you want to buy quality eyeglasses while on a budget, Warby Parker is an excellent choice. The prices won’t compete with the cheapest eyeglass options, but with Warby Parker, you get what you pay for.

Additionally, Warby Parker partners with 10 vision insurance providers, so your purchase might be eligible for coverage.

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3. EyeBuyDirect

Pros: Some of the cheapest eyewear available; free shipping; student and veteran discounts; loyalty program
Cons: No free shipping unless you spend $99 or more; doesn’t accept vision insurance
Verdict: Shop at EyeBuyDirect if you’re a student or veteran or can make use of their loyalty program bonuses

EyeBuyDirect is another affordable option to buy eyeglasses online. It’s a worthwhile option if you’re shopping for higher-end brands on a budget.

EyeBuyDirect only sells three brands: Ray-Ban, Oakley, and their exclusive brand RFLKT. However, there’s still plenty of frame variety to choose from for adults and kids. Additionally, if you shop for sales, you can find eyeglasses for up to 50% off.

If the sales section is still too pricey, EyeBuyDirect also sells cheap glasses that rival Zenni Optical’s $6.95 pairs. This category has a range of eyeglass frames between $6 and $15, and standard lenses cost $30.95. Bifocal lenses are $29, and progressive lenses are $49. There’s also a range of customization options, like lens tinting and blue-light blocking, but you can keep costs down if you stick with the basics. Blue-light-blocking lenses start at $49, mirrored sunglasses start at $19, and transition lenses start at $99.

You also have options for coating upgrades. Standard lenses come with anti-scratch and antireflective coatings. However, there are three other lens options available:

Value Lenses: Up to 25% thinner than standard lenses; adds UV protection; $45.90 more
Advanced Lenses: Up to 35% thinner than value lenses; adds UV protection; $99.90 more
Premium Lenses: Up to 25% thinner than value lenses; adds UV blocking, anti-smudge, and dust- and water-repellent coatings; $134.90 more

Upgrading to thinner lenses with different coatings can increase the cost quite significantly.

However, EyeBuyDirect keeps prices low by shipping directly from their manufacturers to your door. If you join the free loyalty program by spending at least $75 within a year, you also unlock:

A buy-one, get-one offer on your birthday
15% off sitewide on your account anniversary
30% off sitewide each quarter
A free eyeglasses case
Early access to new collections and 15% off

You can also enjoy a 20% student discount or veteran discount if you qualify.

Like Zenni Optical, EyeBuyDirect doesn’t accept insurance, so check with your vision care provider before shopping to see if they can reimburse you.

Regular U.S. shipping costs $5.95 unless your order is $119 or more. EyeBuyDirect also ships internationally starting from $19 ($9.95 to Canada). You have 14 days to make a return for a replacement or refund. Your glasses are also covered for one year if there are evident defects in material and build.

If you don’t mind the lack of brands and want incredibly affordable eyeglasses, EyeBuyDirect is one of the best websites to shop.

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4. Zenni Optical

Pros: $6.95 eyewear is one of the cheapest options
Cons: No free shipping; no complete refund policy; doesn’t accept vision insurance
Verdict: Shop at Zenni if you aren’t picky about your frame options and want to keep costs as low as possible

With prices starting at $6.95 for single-vision prescription glasses, it’s hard to find a more affordable solution for eyewear than Zenni Optical.

Like Glasses USA, Zenni Optical carries various frame styles for adults and kids. In fact, there are thousands of frame designs. Plus, unlike many online glasses retailers, Zenni Optical also manufactures their own eyeglasses.

That cuts out intermediaries and the need to hold massive amounts of inventory, which is why Zenni Optical is so affordable. Once you find a design that appeals to you, you can also complete a virtual try-on to confirm you like the fit.

You must provide your pupillary distance (PD) to order glasses. However, measuring your PD is easy if your eye doctor hasn’t already done so. If you’ve never worn glasses before, you can also use the sizing chart to find the right fit. To finalize an order, enter your prescription information and confirm.

Prices include the frame, basic thin and single-vision prescription lenses, anti-scratch coating, and UV protection. You can add blue-light-blocking lenses to almost any Zenni frame starting at $16.95. Progressive lenses start at $27.95, and bifocals start at $17. You can also add a sunglass tint for free, though the premium tint option is $29.95.

Zenni Optical doesn’t accept insurance. However, if you have vision insurance, check with your provider to see if they will reimburse your total purchase from Zenni Optical or cover vision expenses up to a certain amount.

Standard U.S. shipping costs $4.95, and orders take 14 to 21 days to arrive. Zenni Optical also ships internationally. You have 30 days from receiving your glasses to make a return for a 50% refund or one-time 100% store credit reimbursement. If there is a manufacturing error or damage, you receive a full refund under the 30-day warranty.

If you’re looking for designer glasses or an extensive list of name brands, this website isn’t for you. However, if you want to buy cheap glasses online, it’s hard to beat a starting price of $6.95 for frames and low prices on both progressive and bifocal lenses.

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5. Eyeconic

Pros: Free shipping; a range of 10% discounts; benefits for certain vision insurance providers
Cons: Limited clearance section and expensive lens upgrades
Verdict: If you have vision insurance with Eyeconic partners or want to take advantage of a 10%-off bonus, shop at Eyeconic

If you prefer certain name-brand eyewear or want variety, Eyeconic offers more choice than most online eyewear retailers. In fact, Eyeconic carries nearly 50 brands for adults and kids, including Cole Haan, Columbia, Jones New York, Kate Spade, Oakley, and Saint Laurent.

Frames start at around $120 unless you find a sale. This price includes single-vision lenses with scratch-resistant coating and UV protection. Progressive lenses add approximately $60 to $70 to the price, depending on your frames. Unfortunately, prescription sunglasses don’t include free prescription lenses, and the cheapest pair of single-vision-lens sunglasses starts at around $170.

If you want an antireflective coating and impact-resistant lenses, you can also upgrade to the gold lens package for about $100. The platinum lens package is $145 extra and includes Eyeconic’s thinnest lenses. Finally, you can upgrade to blue-light-protective lenses or transition lenses for $100.

If you shop on clearance, you can usually find pairs from designer brands for between $100 and $150. Clearance inventory isn’t where Eyeconic shines, and the selection is admittedly limited. However, where Eyeconic differs from the competition is in their eyewear discounts. Though subject to change at any time, current discounts include:

10% off your first order after signing up for Eyeconic’s newsletter
10% off for students, teachers, military members, first responders, and seniors
Free frame adjustment at participating in-network doctors
20% off on eyewear for VSP, MetLife, and Cigna members
$40 or more in credits for VSP, MetLife, and Cigna members for connecting their vision insurance to their Eyeconic account

Eyeconic also states that VSP, MetLife, and Cigna members can save up to $220 on eyewear and contacts. Vision insurance is the best way to save money on eyewear at many retailers, but Eyeconic promotes these savings across their website.

If you have vision insurance with a different provider, you can complete an out-of-network claim form and still benefit from coverage. Note that an out-of-network claim doesn’t guarantee a discount or up to $220 in savings if your provider doesn’t have the same arrangement with Eyeconic.

Standard ground shipping is free. Currently, Eyeconic only ships within the U.S.

Eyeconic isn’t the cheapest way to buy eyeglasses online if you don’t have vision insurance. However, between their 10% discount and vision insurance promotions, it’s an excellent option for VSP-, MetLife-, and Cigna-covered individuals looking specifically for designer eyewear.

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6. Eyebobs

Pros: Free U.S. shipping; high-quality readers you can wear that all day; variety of lens upgrades; one-on-one style consultations to help you find the right eyewear
Cons: Single-vision and progressives are on the pricier side
Verdict: Shop at Eyebobs if you want high-quality readers you can wear all day

Eyebobs is another option to buy affordable eyeglasses for adults, especially if you’re looking for high-quality reading glasses.

Readers start at $95 at regular pricing and $49 when on sale. Overall, Eyebobs has more variety for readers than most online eyewear retailers that focus on prescription glasses. According to its website, Eyebobs is the No. 1 premium reader brand. And its all-day readers have a progressive lens with your reader magnification at the bottom part of the lens, half the magnification in the middle, and no magnification at the top. That means you can wear the same pair of readers while reading a book, typing at your computer, or socializing with friends.

Blue-light readers start at $135, and all-day readers start at $155. You can also find dozens of stylish designs for blue-light glasses and sunglasses starting at $95 if you want more than reading glasses.

For prescription eyewear, Eyebobs is on the pricier side versus the cheapest eyewear retailers, with glasses starting at $245 for single-vision prescriptions and $345 for progressives. Glasses come with coatings for scratch-resistance, antireflection, and UV protection. You also have several upgrades available:

Thinner lenses for $50
Blue-light-blocking lenses for $40
Transition lenses for $90
Polarized lenses for $90

There’s a webcam-powered virtual try-on option that lets you see how most frames fit your face. Eyebobs also has a 10-question style quiz that asks about your face structure, reading habits, and style preferences to find the perfect pair. Finally, you can book a one-on-one virtual Zoom consultation with an Eyebobs team member to find the right eyewear.

U.S. shipping is free, and international shipping rates vary depending on the country. U.S. customers can return or exchange unused eyewear within 90 days for free. International customers also have 90 days for returns or exchange but have to pay for shipping. Eyebobs doesn’t accept vision insurance payments but recommends checking with your provider to see if your purchase is eligible for reimbursement.

Eyebobs isn’t the most affordable choice if you want a cheap pair of prescription eyewear with single-vision or progressive lenses. But for premium readers, Eyebobs certainly stands out from the competition with more frame variety and lens upgrade options.

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7. Costco Optical

Pros: In-store optometrists; free shipping on orders of $75 or more; accepts most vision insurance plans
Cons: Not the cheapest eyewear option; requires an annual Costco membership
Verdict: Shop at Costco Optical if you already have a Costco membership and prefer buying eyewear in person or need to see an optometrist

For many households, shopping at Costco is an easy solution to save money by buying in bulk without sacrificing on quality. Warehouse stores generally charge a lower markup than regular retailers, which is why a warehouse membership is often worth it.

A basic Costco membership is $60 per year. However, if you plan to shop at Costco Optical in addition to the regular warehouse, the cost is easily worth it.

Costco isn’t as cheap as online retailers like Zenni Optical. According to Clark.com, the price of an entry-level pair of single-vision glasses at Costco is approximately $126, though this is subject to change over time and between stores. However, when you consider the quality of service and availability of Costco, it’s easy to see why Costco Optical is a popular choice for those who prefer shopping for eyewear in person.

You can also shop online at Costco Optical. However, you need an up-to-date prescription, and the risk of buying the wrong frame is higher than shopping in the store. At Costco, you have trained opticians to assist you at every step, from your eye exam to finding the right frame.

Costco accepts most vision insurance plans. You can shop for a range of brand-name and designer frames, like Oakley and Balmain. Costco also carries Kirkland Signature HD progressive lenses, which are antireflective and provide higher-definition vision at any distance.

If you don’t shop at Costco and would only use your membership for optical purchases, the cost probably isn’t worth it. However, when you consider the quality of service and multiple ways to save money at Costco, their optical center is an affordable option for members.

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8. Sam’s Club Optical

Pros: Free shipping; 20% off eyewear with plus membership; in-store optometrists
Cons: Requires an annual Sam’s Club membership
Verdict: Shop at Sam’s Club if you already have a membership there and don’t have vision insurance to take advantage of a 20% discount

Sam’s Club is an affordable way to buy everything from electronics and furniture to office supplies, groceries, and sporting goods. A basic membership only costs $45 per year. You can also buy the plus membership for $100 and earn 2% cash back on select purchases, enjoy free shipping, and get free select prescriptions.

But the plus membership also provides 20% off a pair of prescription eyeglasses or prescription sunglasses at regular price. Unfortunately, the offer doesn’t apply if you use vision insurance.

The optical center is also more affordable than Costco’s, though pricing is subject to change. Designer frames with nonglare, single-vision lenses start as low as $59. According to Consumer Reports, you can find basic progressive lenses at Sam’s Club for as low as $79. You can also change your lenses and frames to suit your needs. Lens options like Pentax are similar to Kirkland Signature HD progressive lenses, and options like UV protection and adaptive lenses are available.

You can’t purchase prescription eyewear online with Sam’s Club. However, like Costco, Sam’s Club has on-site optometrists, so you can schedule an eye exam. Sam’s Club generally accepts popular vision insurance plans but states that you should contact your local Sam’s Club to check eligible providers.

If you want to save money on everyday purchases alongside eyewear, signing up for a Sam’s Club membership is undoubtedly worth the money.

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9. 39DollarGlasses

Pros: 4% cash-back rewards program; extensive vision insurance network; offers lens replacements
Cons: No free shipping unless you spend $99
Verdict: Shop at 39DollarGlasses during a sale period or if your household can take advantage of the EyeBucks rewards program with multiple purchases

If you want a happy medium between $6.95 eyeglasses from Zenni Optical and more expensive in-store brands, 39DollarGlasses is for you.

As the name suggests, 39DollarGlasses carries a variety of prescription glasses for $39. Prescription sunglasses are only $48.95. All eyewear purchases include single-vision lenses, and regular bifocals and progressive lenses cost $80.

You can also add lens customizations like HD light and thin or polarized lenses. For single-vision glasses, it’s possible to stay at $39 if you don’t add customizations. Otherwise, expect to pay at least $100 to $150 for a pair of prescription eyewear. Blue-light-protective lenses are also available for an extra $50.

This retailer also offers lens replacement. Just enter details about your frame, lens type, and whether you want upgrades like blue-light protection. The base price for lenses is still $39, although bifocals and progressives cost at least $80. There’s also a $14.95 lens replacement fee. Ultimately, it can save some money if you have expensive frames and just need to fix broken lenses or receive a new prescription.

You can save more money by joining the EyeBucks rewards program. Once you make a purchase, you’re automatically enrolled. This loyalty program pays 4% of eyeglasses purchases in cash-back account credits, and credits don’t expire.

Shipping is free if you spend more than $99. Otherwise, regular shipping costs $4.95, and most orders arrive within two weeks. The company also ships internationally. For returns, you have 90 days to seek in-store credit after delivery. If you want a refund, you only have 30 days, and shipping charges are nonrefundable.

The company occasionally offers coupon codes and seasonal bonuses, so remember to visit their website when shopping around for a new pair of eyewear. The company also partners with 10 vision insurance providers, including Aetna, EyeMed, Humana, and Avesis.

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10. DiscountGlasses.com

Pros: Free shipping; affordable starting frames; offers lens replacements
Cons: Fewer options for lens coating customization; no blue-light protection for progressive lenses
Verdict: DiscountGlasses.com has a competitive clearance section, although there are fewer frame options on sale than websites like Glasses USA

DiscountGlasses.com is another affordable online eyewear retailer that carries over 1,000 designs for adults and kids. Plus, with frames starting under $15 on clearance and under $30 for nonclearance frames, DiscountGlasses.com has an affordable entry point for eyewear.

Pricing includes single-vision lenses. You can upgrade to thin or ultra-thin lenses for an extra $20 or $50, respectively. Basic progressive lenses cost an additional $60, meaning you can find progressive lens eyewear for less than $100 if you buy the cheapest non-clearance frames. Thin and ultra-thin progressive lens upgrades cost about $20 and $50, respectively.

There are also several upgrades available for your lenses:

Blue-Light Protection: Only available for single-vision lenses for about $20 extra
Transition Lenses: Available for single-vision and progressive lenses for about $80 extra
Sun Tint: Turn eyeglasses into sunglasses with UV protection for about $5
Antireflective Coating: Costs an additional $20

DiscountGlasses.com also carries prescription sunglasses starting under $30 on clearance and under $50 for nonclearance frames. Lenses start at around $10 extra, although you can upgrade to thin and ultra-thin lenses for about $30 and $50 extra, respectively. Adding polarized lenses costs an additional $10.

Plus, DiscountGlasses replaces lenses for free within one year of your purchase if your doctor changes your prescription due to vision problems you’re experiencing with your current pair of eyewear.

DiscountGlasses.com states they are an out-of-network provider for most insurance plans, including Davis Vision, EyeMed, Spectra/United Healthcare, and VSP. If you shop at DiscountGlasses.com, check with your current vision care provider to see if you have coverage.

Standard U.S. shipping is free with DiscountGlasses.com, regardless of your order total, which is a plus. There’s also a 365-day return policy under which you can return eyewear for store credit or a replacement pair if you’re unsatisfied with your eyewear.

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11. Lensabl

Pros: Free U.S. shipping; extensive upgrade options; free blue-light protection; offers lens replacements; more affordable than some of the competition
Cons: Not a huge selection of bifocals
Verdict: If you want extensive prescription upgrades, Lensabl is for you; may not be the best option for those who need bifocals

Like Warby Parker, Lensabl offers regular and designer eyewear at affordable prices. While this isn’t the cheapest eyewear retailer, prices are comparable to Warby Parker, though some frames are totally free with a lens purchase. Plus, in terms of lens upgrades, Lensabl has more selection than the competition.

Single-vision prescription with frames and lenses start at $97, and progressives start at $197. You can also find designer frames from brands like Toms and Grey Ant, but those generally cost around $200 to $250. Additionally, bifocals aren’t an option for most frame types and are usually only available in premium brands, not the $97 starter prescriptions.

Upgrade options include:

Premium Progressive Lenses. These high-definition, wide-corridor progressive lenses have a wider reading area compared to normal progressive lenses. This upgrade costs $327 in total.
High-Index Lenses. This single-vision prescription upgrade to 25% thinner lenses costs $50 more.
Transition Lenses. These lenses adapt to light, darkening when you’re outdoors and remaining light while inside. This upgrade costs an additional $60.
Trivex Lenses. These impact- and shatter-resistant lenses cost an additional $60.
Premium Coating Package. Get scratch resistance, smudge resistance, UV protection, and a hydrophobic (water-repellant) coating for $40 more.
Premium Coating and Antifog. Antifog protection plus everything from the premium coating package costs $75 more.
Crizal Prevencia AR. All premium coatings, superior scratch resistance, antifog protection, and blue-light protection costs $125 more.
Edge Polishing. Edge polishing helps lenses appear thinner, making it popular for prescriptions with thicker lens edges to enhance their cosmetic appearance. However, polishing can cause more reflections and overall light to enter, so it’s best to pair this with an antireflective coating. Polish the edges of rimless glasses for $15 or polish and roll the edges of rimless glasses for $25.

Ultimately, Lensabl’s various coating options let you upgrade your prescription to suit your needs. It’s also worth noting that blue-light protection is available for free, which is a nice touch since most retailers charge extra for it.

Lensabl also carries contact lenses and prescription sunglasses. Like regular prescription eyewear, single-vision sunglasses start at $97 and progressive prescription sunglasses start at $197. Night lenses that are 50% orange-tinted help block blue light are also available for $127 for single-vision prescriptions and $227 for progressive prescriptions.

Another convenient feature Lensabl offers is lens replacement. If you damage your lenses, you can send your glasses to Lensabl for repair and receive your glasses back within four to seven business days. Lens replacement starts at $77 for single-vision prescriptions. Progressive lenses cost $197 and bifocals cost $127. Various coating upgrades or thinner lenses are regular price for lens replacement.

Lensabl doesn’t accept vision care insurance as payment. However, some vision care partners allow you to submit your invoice for reimbursement. Lensabl partners include VSP, Atena, United Healthcare, Cigna, Humana, and EyeMed.

U.S. shipping is free, and Canadian shipping is $35. You can’t return eyewear, although remakes are free if there’s a defect with your prescription or they were made incorrectly. You have 30 days to ask for a remake.

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12. Felix Gray

Pros: Free U.S. shipping; high-quality blue-light blocking eyewear
Cons: Bifocal and progressive lenses unavailable; lack of lens customization options
Verdict: Felix Gray is your best option if you want single-vision prescription eyewear with leading blue-light blocking technology

Unlike other eyewear retailers, every pair of eyewear from Felix Gray comes with blue-light blocking technology. If you’re always staring at a screen because of an office or remote job or just have a lot of screen time in general, Felix Gray’s commitment to digital wellness is a selling point.

There are two primary eyewear lines at Felix Gray:

Clear Lens. Felix Gray says these are the best lenses for anyone experiencing headaches, blurry vision, or eyestrain. According to Felix Gray, these lenses also filter out 15 times more blue light than other blue-light-blocking brands.
Amber Lens. Eyewear in this line is best for anyone experiencing headaches, blurry vision, difficulty sleeping, and eyestrain. Felix Gray says these lenses are clinically proven to improve sleep and filter out 23 times more blue light than other brands. If you stay up late watching TV or are on your phone or laptop before bed, this is the right line for you.

Eyewear styles are available for adults and kids. Prescriptions for Clear lens eyewear start at $145, while Amber prescriptions start at $195.

Felix Gray only offers single-vision prescription, reading glasses, and nonprescription eyewear. Unfortunately, that means you can’t order bifocals or progressives. But Felix Gray says it can fulfill single-vision prescriptions from minus 6.00 to plus 4.00 and prescriptions that have an add power, which increases lens power.

Ultimately, that makes Felix Gray less flexible than other eyewear retailers. But if you wear a single-vision or reading prescription or nonprescription glasses and want the best blue-light-blocking technology, it’s an excellent choice.

You can use a virtual try-on tool that uses your computer’s webcam to demonstrate how the frames fit your face. You also get free shipping, returns, exchanges, and a 30-day money-back guarantee, allowing you to try Felix Gray without any risk. Eyewear also has a one-year manufacturer’s warranty that protects against defects in material, design or manufacture, coating, and cracks.

Customers in Canada and Mexico have to shop through Amazon for Felix Gray eyewear. But if you’re a Prime member, you can still enjoy free shipping. International customers shop through MyUS.com to buy Felix Gray glasses at variable shipping rates, depending on where they live.

Felix Gray doesn’t accept vision insurance directly, but you can submit a reimbursement request if you have vision insurance. Felix Gray suggests checking with your provider to see if blue-light lenses are eligible for coverage and if eyewear needs a minimum magnification to qualify.

If you want to buy cheap prescription eyewear and save as much as possible, Felix Gray isn’t the right fit. But for single-vision prescriptions with leading blue-light blocking technology, Felix Gray is your best choice.

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13. Swanwick

Pros: High-quality, scientifically proven blue light blocking capabilities; prescription grade CR-39 lens; free shipping on orders over $50
Cons: Great selection for blue light blockers but limited otherwise
Verdict: Swanwick is your best choice for blue light blocking and filtering glasses that help you fall asleep more easily, wake up feeling refreshed, and manage eye strain throughout the day.

Swanwick specializes in blue light blocking glasses with scientifically proven benefits for people with eye strain and sleep issues. Its product lineup includes:

Night Swannies specifically designed for use before bed and during sleep periods
Day Swannies, which filter blue light throughout the day without sacrificing vision clarity or contrast
Prescription Swannies featuring CR-39 lenses
Readers and fitovers with blue light filtration capabilities
Kids Swannies built to fit kids of all ages
Polarized sunglasses with blue light blocking capabilities

Swanwick also sells accessories like glasses cases and sleep aids like eyemasks and aromatherapy diffusers. Pricing is very competitive and shipping is free on orders over $50.

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Final Word

Unless you get laser eye surgery, spending money on eyeglasses or contacts is an inevitable part of your annual budget.

Vision care is expensive. However, you don’t have to pay full price for eyewear or let expensive designer frames drain your bank account. If you shop for deals and understand your health insurance coverage, it’s easy to buy discount eyeglasses that are both stylish and affordable.

Just remember to schedule regular eye exams to ensure your prescription is up to date. The cost of an eye exam is worth ensuring your prescription actually helps your vision, and you can make up the cost by never overpaying for eyewear again.

Tom is a freelance writer originally from Toronto, Canada. Tom’s passion for finance and discovering methods to make money originally sparked in college when he was trying to make ends meet on a tight budget. Outside of freelance writing, Tom also manages the blog This Online World – a personal finance website dedicated to helping young adults make and save more money.

Source: moneycrashers.com

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